1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an attachment for a grain harvester thresher or combine for chopping and crushing stalks of the grain crop, particularly corn.
2. Prior Art
European patent application publication No. 0 091 635 discloses a harvester in which stalks of a grain crop are pulled through a picking slot to separate the grain heads, such as corncobs, from the remainder of the plant. Such harvester includes mechanism for crushing the plant stalks after leaving the picking slot between a picking roller and a stationary partial housing and for chopping the stalks by an adjacent fixed knife.
Experience has shown that the chopping and crushing effectiveness of the accessory decrease over time due to wear on the various parts which affects the speed and efficiency of the entire harvester thresher or combine. Consequently, harvester threshers or combines often are not provided with a stalk-chopping or crushing attachment, so that more than one trip over the field is required which can increase expense and also increase contamination of the environment.